


This year feels so brand new (tie a ribbon around me and you)

by LilithReisender



Category: Good Omens (TV)
Genre: Christmas fic, Good Omens TV - Freeform, Ineffable Husbands (Good Omens), M/M, The whole thing is literally just christmas sweetness, aziraphale - Freeform, crowley - Freeform, holiday fic, shameless fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-25
Updated: 2019-12-25
Packaged: 2021-02-26 17:55:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,990
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21942526
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LilithReisender/pseuds/LilithReisender
Summary: It was dark inside, all the curtains were drawn and the lights were turned off. That was rather odd, but Aziraphale didn't think much about it. He dropped off his groceries in the kitchen, placing the flowers in a small vase before wandering into the dark living room, fully expecting to see Crowley sleeping on the couch. What he *actually* saw however, was an empty room with a small pine tree sitting in the corner. It had been placed there with obvious care, each needle and branch perfectly arranged to suit the space available. It was decorated with red and gold circular ornaments, and had soft lights spiraling up the branches and illuminating the room with a slightly golden light. The entire ensemble was completed by a multi-pointed white star on the top of the tree.It was absolutely beautiful.And Aziraphale had no idea why it was there.
Relationships: Aziraphale/Crowley (Good Omens)
Comments: 2
Kudos: 34





	This year feels so brand new (tie a ribbon around me and you)

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Deamonia](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Deamonia/gifts).



> This was written for the request "Cozy Christmas feels" with just little bit of history thrown in there just for kicks by my dear friend (and occasional grammar corrector) Deamonia. Merry Christmas darling, I hope this lived up to your request XD.

**Devil's Dyke, England, 2019**

Amazingly, time continued on and the world kept spinning. There was no end of the world left to fear, Heaven and Hell respectively decided that Crowley and Aziraphale were to be left alone. They were _free._ So, they did what any reasonable beings might do after hiding their feelings for six thousand years and confessed. To Aziraphale's surprise, it had been Crowley who spoke first, stuttering the whole way through. He had looked so blessedly nervous, as if he had expected Aziraphale to rebuke him. Aziraphale had simply smiled and kissed him, a rush of fondness and affection and most of all _love_ surging through him as Crowley kissed him as if Aziraphale were the only thing keeping him on Earth. 

Things hadn't become clearer after that, but they had become so much better.

Aziraphale didn't know when their former employers would come for them, but he and Crowley decided to put that aside, choosing to appreciate the stolen time they had rather than live in fear of what might happen in the future- they had spent far too long doing that already. Which was why, when Crowley mentioned over dinner one evening the idea of possibly leaving London, Aziraphale practically jumped at the chance. They found themselves a lovely cottage in the South Downs, and moved in quickly, eager to get out of the business of the city and to embrace the calmness of the countryside. They had stayed together before, for brief periods of time. They had spent a few days together back in the beginning, working together to fill out paperwork for Dagon and Gabriel in a small hut back in Mesopotamia. They had spent months together in Venice in the fifteenth century while Aziraphale pretended to be an ambassador and Crowley was his "travelling companion." And of course there was the various years they spent together while minding Warlock. Aziraphale knew Crowley's habits, and Crowley knew Aziraphale's. It took a little while, but they slowly began to fall into the rhythm of living together.

**London, England, 1843**

It was the beginning of what was sure to be a great time to be in London. Aziraphale had noticed the ever-so-subtle shift that had happened in culture over the past few years and was quite delighted. Along with the publication of Mr. Dicken's new book, the coming holiday seemed as if it were going to be truly joyous. But Aziraphale was not blind, he could see that change was coming, but not quickly enough. There was still extreme poverty and the people were still sick, and while it seemed that the Queen was truly interested in making things better for the people, they still had a long way to go. Which was why Aziraphale had been following the spirit that had grown to accompany the holiday season and was giving away small gifts to some of the children and families who needed it most. Not much, nothing that Heaven could reprimand him for, but enough that he could make sure that some of the families had warm food to get them through the cold night food, or so that the kids might have a small toy to amuse themselves. He had however, lost track of time, which was why he found himself walking back into his shop in the dark on Christmas eve. He had no sooner sat down on his chair in the back room with a book in his hands when there was a loud knocking on his door and an even louder crash. 

"Sorry 'bout that Aziraphale!" a voice called out to him. Aziraphale rolled his eyes and stood up; there was only one person, or rather- only one _demon_ , who would barge in like this. 

Crowley was leaning languidly on one of the bookshelves, trying very hard to look casual. Aziraphale scanned the floor, looking for evidence of what had caused such a loud commotion when Crowley had first entered. 

"Cleaned it up for you." Crowley said, not meeting Aziraphale's eyes. Aziraphale let a small smile creep onto his face. Crowley shuffled his feet, trying to stand up, but then promptly tripped over nothing and fell, quite literally, right into Aziraphale's arms as the demon's face crashed into Aziraphale's chest. 

"Crowley, are you- that is to say, are you drunk?" Crowley looked up, a light blush dusting his cheeks.

"Absolutely sloshed." Crowley grinned, burying his face into Aziraphale's neck for a second before pushing himself up, suddenly looking oddly bashful. "I brought something for you." Crowley said, running his fingers through his hair. "Nothing all that special, 'was in the neighborhood and all." Aziraphale had known the demon long enough to be able to tell when he was lying, like now for instance. He pretended to act casual, as if whatever he had done wasn't a big deal in the least. Aziraphale knew better than to push it, especially when Crowley was this drunk. All he would get would be half formed excuses or silence. Crowley reached Around Aziraphale to the small coffee table behind him and lifted up a small red package. He held it out for Aziraphale to take, his fingers lingering slightly over Aziraphale's hand before he relinquished his hold on the box. Aziraphale lifted the lid and gasped in delight.

"Chocolates!"

"I know how much you like them and besides..." Crowley drifted off, staring at his feet and muttering something unintelligible. 

"What was that, my dear?" 

"Nothing." Crowley answered quickly. 

They stood there in an awkward silence for a moment before Crowley stood up stiffly.

"Well, it was nice to see you angel, but I've best be-"

"You mean you aren't staying?"

"Would you like me to?" Crowley asked inquisitively. 

"I certainly can't have a drunk demon running amok in London on Christmas eve."

"So..."

"Would you like to stay for a bit longer?" Aziraphale offered, blocking the door. There was something not quite right in the way that Crowley was acting, this drunken hesitance that was so different from his usual confident self. And besides, it was Christmas eve after all, Aziraphale supposed that it would be perfectly alright if he made sure that Crowley didn't leave the shop drunk again. He was preventing further evils from entering the world, so he told himself.

"Well," Crowley said dramatically, throwing himself over the back of a chair, "what sort of demon would I be to resist temptation?"

"A sober one." 

Crowley laughed, "True enough."

An hour later Aziraphale was sitting on the couch next to a no-longer-drunk demon with a half-empty box of chocolates between them. 

"What's with all this anyways?" Crowley asked, motioning his arm in a wide circle.

"All what?"

" _This,_ you know, the decorations everywhere." Crowley gestured to the front door, where Aziraphale had hung a wreath, and then to the red poinsettias that Aziraphale had placed in various corners of the bookshop. Crowley glared at one of the plants that was beginning to wilt slightly and hissed. The plant immediately straightened up, its petals returning to a bright shade of red. Aziraphale slapped his arm playfully. 

"You _know_ you didn't have to do that."

"Maybe not," Crowley admitted, "but its fun." Crowley shifted so that he was fully facing Aziraphale. "Seriously though, why is this place all decorated. You know as well as I do that Jesus wasn't even born at this time of year, they're a couple of months early with the whole thing."

"Yes, you are correct, but its not about whether or not its accurate anymore. The meaning has changed, and that's what matters. And granted, there is a fair amount of religious relevance to the day, but it has become a day that is about giving gifts to loved ones and bringing joy to others. I can't help but feel like celebrating a day when the majority of humanity decides that they just want to be kind to one another for a little while." 

"Of course that's how you see it." Crowley said fondly. He reached over and covered one of Aziraphale's hands with his own, and a line from Shakespeare suddenly flew to the front of Aziraphale's mind: " _and palm to palm is holy palmer's kiss._ "

"Never change angel." The demon said softly, holding Aziraphale's gaze. Aziraphale felt a tug at his heart at the look Crowley was giving him. It was a familiar feeling, but one he continually and deliberately chose not to think about. He really shouldn't have noticed how close together they had gotten, how Crowley's hand over his was warm and comforting and how in that moment all that Aziraphale really wanted to do was lean forward and-

No. He should not have been thinking about that at all. 

Crowley's gaze flickered downwards and for a moment Aziraphale thought that Crowley might have been thinking along the same lines he was. Then the demon's expression changed and he leaned backwards, lifting his hand from Aziraphale's. 

"Now, I don't know about you, but I think a nice red would go with this chocolate wonderfully." 

"You just sobered up." Aziraphale protested halfheartedly.

"But it's a _holiday_ Aziraphale, you said today was about bringing people joy, and right now what would bring _me_ joy would be to have a glass of wine." Aziraphale smiled and brought a bottle and two glasses to the table in front of them with a wave of his hand. Crowley smiled at him, and they both raised their glasses in a silent toast.

**Devil's Dyke, London, 2019**

Crowley had been acting rather odd as of late. As the holiday season had approached, he had been acting more and more furtive, disappearing for various hours at a time and then reappearing with no explanation as to where he had been. It wasn't that Aziraphale expected Crowley to be with him at all times, they had gone centuries without seeing each other before, and both of them still had their own lives, but he did hope that whatever thing Crowley was doing that had him so anxious, he was at least being careful.

A few days from Christmas, Aziraphale left the cottage early in the morning to go into the nearby town. A light snow had fallen the night before, dusting the ground with fine white powder perforated by little blades of grass. He ordered a loaf of French bread from the bakery and then went to the nearby florist in hopes of finding something to make Crowley relax a little bit. He chose a small bouquet of orange azaleas and began his walk back to the cottage. So much had happened in the last few months, it was difficult to believe that only earlier this summer Aziraphale had been clinging to the belief that they were enemies. How foolish he had been, wasting all those years holding onto an illusion. He pushed the matter aside, however idiotic he may have been in the past, he was making up for it now.

He pushed open the cottage door,

"Crowley?" He called out to the empty hallway. It was dark inside, all the curtains were drawn and the lights were turned off. That was rather odd, but Aziraphale didn't think much about it. He dropped off his groceries in the kitchen, placing the flowers in a small vase before wandering into the dark living room, fully expecting to see Crowley sleeping on the couch. What he _actually_ saw however, was an empty room with a small pine tree sitting in the corner. It had been placed there with obvious care, each needle and branch perfectly arranged to suit the space available. It was decorated with red and gold circular ornaments, and had soft lights spiraling up the branches and illuminating the room with a slightly golden light. The entire ensemble was completed by a multi-pointed white star on the top of the tree. 

It was absolutely beautiful.

And Aziraphale had no idea why it was there. 

He assumed that Crowley had put it up, but what he didn't understand was why. The demon had begun to revel in the holiday season over the past few decades, enjoying how easy it was to send humans into furies over buying "the best" gifts and starting family quarrels, but he had never even implied that he would do something like putting up a tree or anything that involved the holiday. He had always claimed it was ridiculous and that demons didn't celebrate things like this. 

"Crowley?" Aziraphale called out once again. 

He was answered with silence. _Where was he?_ Aziraphale wondered, taking one last look at the tree before turning around and going back into the hall. He had a feeling that he knew where the demon was hiding. 

Aziraphale stood in front of the closed wooden door that led to their shared bedroom. Aziraphale had never quite seen the point in sleeping, but Crowley had eventually convinced him that it was something worth trying, and though Aziraphale would never admit it out loud, he had grown to rather enjoy sleeping, especially next to Crowley. He knocked on the door and gently pushed it open. Crowley was standing in the middle of the room, wringing his hands nervously.

"Hey angel." Crowley said, clearly trying to be casual and obviously failing. 

"Hello my dear." Aziraphale took Crowley's hand in his and sat down on the edge of the bed. "I saw the tree," Aziraphale said. Crowley sat down next to him, brushing his knee against Aziraphale's. "It was beautiful, Crowley. Thank you." 

"It's really no big deal angel, I just thought... I mean, we've never done this before. Not together I mean. We've spent holidays together, so many different holidays now that I think about it. But we've never actually _celebrated_ you know? I thought that, maybe we should..." Crowley trailed off, not finishing his sentence. Aziraphale twisted around and hugged him, wrapping his arms around the demon's slender body and pulling him close. He understood _exactly_ what Crowley meant. They had indeed spent multiple holidays together, but that wasn't what Crowley meant. He didn't want to celebrate the holiday per se, he wanted to celebrate being able to live to see another holiday, to celebrate a holiday truly together after spending millennia holding each other at arms length. Aziraphale pulled away slightly, letting his hands rest on Crowley's lower back.

"My dear, that sounds wonderful." Crowley's shoulders relaxed, visibly losing some of the tension he had been carrying. A devilish smirk crept onto his face.

"Well in that case," Crowley motioned upwards with his head and Aziraphale looked up to see a sprig of mistletoe hanging above them that he was _certain_ had not been there a moment before. He laughed,

"You know, if you want me to kiss you, all you have to do is ask." Crowley's face flushed slightly as Aziraphale continued, "All the same, if we are actually going to be celebrating the holiday this year, I suppose that we should actually adhere to some of the traditions, this seems as fair a start as any." 

Crowley rolled his eyes and kissed him, sliding his hands around Aziraphale's waist as Aziraphale brought one hand to the back of Crowley's neck, angling their heads together so he could deepen the kiss slightly. He pulled away after a moment, noticing the way Crowley's eyes darted down towards his lips as Aziraphale sat up straight. 

"Should have done this years ago." Crowley muttered.

"We were both foolish, but we're here now, and that's all that matters."

Aziraphale and Crowley leaned against each other on the couch. Crowley was angled so that he could rest his head on Aziraphale's shoulder, and Aziraphale had his arm wrapped comfortably around Crowley's waist. All the lights in the house were off save for the fireplace and the lights on the Christmas tree. The dim lighting oddly reminiscent of candlelight in the way that it flickered across Crowley's face. Aziraphale twisted his neck to kiss the top of Crowley's head. 

"Do you remember," Crowley was saying, "the ridiculous ways that the carolers used to dress up?"

"I believe so, black cloaks and masks?"

" _Exactly!_ Who went "Our whole choir is going to go walk around in the dead of winter singing songs while looking like we're about to rob you?" Who thought that was a great idea?"

"It was based off that old way of mumming if I remember correctly. Besides, it tended to work out well enough for them."

Crowley snorted, "How many times did different groups of carolers come into your shop because you would always invite them in for cocoa?"

"Quite a lot actually. I think I might have developed a reputation in that regards. I used to not open the shop the entire holiday season to ensure that nobody tried to buy one of my books, but those carolers certainly were persistent." 

Crowley laughed, "Proper Father Christmas you are." Aziraphale poked Crowley in the side playfully. "Hey!" The demon protested, "What was that for?"

"Nothing at all dear." Crowley went for what Aziraphale assumed was supposed to be an irritated silence, but it was rather hard to take him seriously when he was resting his head on Aziraphale's shoulder and playing with Aziraphale's fingers. 

"Crowley?"

"Yes?"

"I love you, my darling demon." Crowley buried his face in Aziraphale's neck, squeezing his hand a little bit tighter.

"I suppose I love you too."

"Suppose? Well, I'll have to change that." Crowley lifted up his head indulgently and Aziraphale leaned down to kiss him softly on his lips. Crowley sighed dramatically.

"You've got me, I love you Aziraphale." Aziraphale chuckled and settled against the demon's side once more. 

It was, Aziraphale believed, as they watched the fireplace crackle in front of them while they told stories about the past, the perfect way to spend the evening, and Aziraphale hoped that there would be many more nights like this to come.

**Author's Note:**

> 1) Orange azalea's mean "Take care of yourself for me" in flower language.
> 
> 2) Title taken from the song *Warmer in the Winter* by Lindsey Sterling


End file.
